Machine for uniting can bodies and heads.



J. A. GRAY. MACHINE FOR UNITING UAN BODIES AND HEADS. APPLICATION FILED APILZQ, 1910.

1,010,617.; 3 7, PatentedDec.5,1911.

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1,010,617, Patented De0.5, 1911.

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APPLICATION FILED APR.26, 1910.

Patented Dec. 5, 1911.

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I J. A. GRAY. MACHINE FO R UNITING CAN BODIES AND HEADS. APPLICATION FILED AIR.26, 1910.

1,010,617, Patented Dec.5, 1911.

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/ Ill/III) JAMES ALFRFD GRAY, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

MACHINE FOR UNITING CAN BODIES AND HEADS.

Specification .of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 26, 1910.. Serial No. 557,722.REIS

Patented Dec. 5, 1911.

- To all whom it may concern:

g in the appended claims.

Be it known that I, JAMES A. GRAY, citi-f zen of the United States, residing at San Francisco, California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Uniting Can Bodies and Heads, of-

which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to machines for making cans, and more particularly to that portion of such machines employed for seaming the can head to the can, and in the relation of such seaming mechanism to the other parts of the-machine.

The invention consists in the features and combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and particularly set forth In the accompanying drawingsFigure 1 1s a front view of a machine for making cans or attaching can heads to the bodies,

and embodying my present invention; Fig.v

2 is an end elevation of such machine looking from the right of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the feeding mechanism for can bodies; Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the stamping head or crimping device wherein the flange is formed at the top edge of the can; Fig. 5 is a View similar to Fig. 4 of another stamping 'head .for bending the flange of the head and body downwardly and outwardly; Fig. 6, is a view similar to Fig. 5 of another stamping head for performing the next step in the operation of forming the joint between the head and body; Fig. 7 is a side elevation of-the seaming head. Fig. 8 shows the different steps in the operation.

In thesedrawings, 1 are the side'frames of the machine connected by the cross plate or table 2, and having journaled at their upper parts a drive shaft 3 carryinga gear wheel 4' through which power is communicated to the machine. In the side frames,-

' a cross head 5 is guided to move vertically,

said cross head beingoperated from eccentrics or cams'at 6 on the drive shaft 3, and being connected by eccentric rods 7 with the cross head. This orosshead carries a plurality of'stamping heads for performmg different steps in the operation of uniting the can members, as will be hereinafter described, these stamping heads being indicated at a, b, and (1. At the lower part of the frame a shaft 8 is mounted carrying cams, as 9, 10 and 11, for giving vertical movement through rods 12, tovertically movable plungers for elevating the can bodies indicated at 13, to the several stamping heads. This shaft 8 is driven from a shaft 14 through an inclined shaft 15 and-bevel gearing at the upper and lower portions thereof, the shaft 14 being driven rom the main gear 4 through a gear 16. The can bodies to be united to the headsare fed along a table or way '17 suitably supported in the frame, by an endless chain 18 having jaws or projections 19 to grasp the can bodies, said chain passing around wheels 20 at opposite ends of the machine. One of these wheels is on a shaft 21 extending vertically and operated by a Geneva movement consisting'of the wheel 22 thereon having arms or ways 23 extending radially and engaged by a pin or roller 24 on an arm 25 mounted on the vertical shaft 26, which is geared to the drive shaft 3 by the bevel gearing 27. By this Geneva movement the feed chain for the can is moved step by step, andat each movement a can is brought beneath the first stamp-ing head a. This stamping head descends, and flares outwardly the upper edge of thecan body, as shown in Fig. 8 at a. For this purpose the stamping head is provided with an inner member 28 having an inclined edge 29 and a depending flange 30, the. said inner member cofiperating with jaws of segmental form shown at 31 within the main outer ring of the stamping head, and supported by the shoulder 32 on the said ring or head. These jaws 31 have inclines at 33, 34, so that, as the stam ing head comes down. the

jaws 31, by striking upon the fixed wall-35 of the way or channel 36 (see Fig. 2) along which the cans pass, will be forced inwardly toward each other by the continued movement of the main body of the stamping head, which causes the inclines 33 and 34 to press thereon and move the said jaws 1nwardly. These jaws 31 have inclined hearing surfaces at 37, andthese, cotiperating with the inclines 29 and the flange 30 on the inner member 28, will cause the upper edge of the can to be flared outwardly.

,When the stamping head raises, springs 38 connected with the ring 39 which, in turn, is connected with the jaws 31, will lift the said jaws and they will be returned to their outer positions by the inclines 40 on the inner "member '28. The next forward step -move1i1ent of the feed chain will cause the can with its flared upper edge to be brought beneath the stamping head I), and at this point a can head will be fed into position above the can body, and the actions indicated at bin. Fig. 8 will take place; that is, the can head will have its flange bent into locking engagement with the flange of the can body, but the position of the parts will be flared upwardly. As this action forms no part of the present invention, I have not shown it in detail herein. The next forward step movement of the feed chain will carry the can, with its united head, beneath the stamping head 0, and this stamping head, as shown in Fig. 5, by means of the edges 41 and 42 on the segmental jaws 43 and inner member 44, respectively, will turn the united flanges of the head and body into the position shown at c in Fig. 8. For this action the can body is lifted to a pointwithin the stamping head .0 by means of the cam 10, and a suitable plunger operated thereby, as indicated in Fig. 1. After leaving the stamping head a, the can body, with its head, is conveyed to the stamping head d, which, as shown in Fig. 6, is composed of inner and outer members which turn the united flanges of the head and body into the position shown at d in Fig. 8. The parts are now ready to be subjected to the action of the seaming or double seaming head. This head is shown at the right of Fig. 1, and in Fig. 7, and it comprises an inner member or ring 45 attached to a vertical shaft 26*. Rotatably mounted on said shaft is a cross bar or head 46 having pivotally mounted thereon arms 47 carrying crimping or seaming wheels 48 and carrying also at their upper ends points or bearings 49. A sleeve 55' is connected to said head at its upper end, and said sleeve carries a pinion 55 so that when the pinion is rotated by the gear 56 on the shaft 26 of the Geneva move-. ment, the sleeve and cross head will also be rotated. A second sleeve 55 is loosely mounted on the sleeve 55, and this sleeve 55 carries at its lower end a cone member 50 and at its upper end a flange 54. The cone member is engaged by the points 49. This cone member is adapted to be moved vertically by a collar 51 located between the cone and flange54, said collar being connected with rods 52 guided in the frame, and operated in any suitable manner from a cam 58 on the drive shaft 3. The center member 45 is provided with a flange 45 directly opposite the grooves 48 in the seaming wheels. After the can, with its attached head, leaves the stamping head 0?, it arrives over a vertically movable plunger operated from the cam 11, and it is raised by this plunger so that the recessed head of the can will be lifted in register with the center 45, and this center will enter the recess in the can head, so that its flange 45' will lie in the same plane with the bead or united flanges of the can and head. The rotation of the cross head 46 through the gear will now cause the seaming wheels to seam the head or flange tightly against the side of the can that the upper ends of the seaming levers 47 will be separated, and the seaming wheels will thus be pressed with a gradual movement and increasing pressure upon the bead of the can or the interlocked flanges. Afterthe seaming action has been completed, the cam 11 lowers the plunger, together with the can, and the next movement of the feed mechanism conveys the can away from the seaming head.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination in a machine for making cans, a series of stamping heads arranged in line, a conveyer having step bv step movement for moving the can body with its head from one head to another, and a seaming head in line with the series of stamping heads and to which the conveying means moves the can body and its attached head, with means for operating the seaming head, substantially as described.

2. In combination in a can making machine, a vertically movable stamping head for partially uniting the can body and head, a conveyer, a seaming head to which the conveyer moves-the can members, a plunger for lifting the can members to the seaming head, and means for operating the seaming head to complete the joint, substantially as described.

S. A can making machine comprising a table, step by step feeding means for moving the cans along the same, a series of vertically movable stamping heads for securing the head to the can, means for actuating a head each time the can comes to rest, and a seaming head to which the can is finally fed for finishing the seam.

In testimony whereof,I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES ALFRED GRAY.

lVitnesses: V i

F. WV. WEST, WILSON LYFORD. 

